From Laugh Track to Reality Check
by shreklove
Summary: A betrayal leads Debra into a situation that she could've never imagined. In times of crisis people discover who they really are. Is it time Debra learns her true nature?
1. Chapter 1 - Betrayal

Debra sat on the edge of her marital bed in silence. She was stuck there with her gaze glued to wall like a poster hung firmly in place by bluetack. In that silence, there were thoughts crossing her mind, entering and disappearing too fast to hold on to. Thoughts like "does Raymond really love me?"… "when is he even coming to bed?"… "I'm over this."… "Is this all my life is?". She snapped out of it and slipped under the covers.

Just as Debra was about to drift off into the warm embrace of sleep Raymond crept into the room, attempting, but failing, to be quiet.

"I'm awake honey, you don't have to be quiet" Debra said in a soothing voice.

"Oh, I thought you would have been asleep for sure by now! Sorry I'm so late getting to bed the Knicks game went to double overtime!" Raymond exclaimed, his words slurred and mind heavily inebriated by alcohol.

"That's ok Ray, why don't you come to bed and go to sleep, its late." Debra grimaced at the thought of having to spend another long night next to a man who reeked of alcohol, cigarettes and BO, a man who no longer seemed to care about her or her needs.

"Yeah I'm getting in now Debs" Raymond mumbled as he clumsily took off his shoes and pants and made his way into bed. Debra felt the space between them as big as space itself. She pianoed her fingers across the sheets towards him, but by the time she tapped his back, he was already fast asleep and snoring as loud as thunder.

As Debra resigned herself to the idea of another night void of love-making, she heard Raymond's phone sound. Suspicious, she sneakily opened his phone.

 _Mimi Kartello_

 _Goodnight hun, sorry you had to go back to your wife. Miss you already x_

Debra started to fume like smoke rising from a barbeque, but she refrained from completely losing it in that moment. She took the phone and quietly ran downstairs, away from the children and her husband. She scrolled through the phone and found so many things she thought she'd never have to see, including nudes shared between her Husband and this woman.

"You fucking asshole" She murmured to herself. 'You know what' she thought, 'I'm going to send something to this bitch'

 _Raymond Barone_

 _Miss you too! My wife's already asleep. Meet you at Red Bar?_

Debra pressed sent and spent the next five minutes pacing around the house like a child with ADHD until…

 _Mimi Kartello_

 _Ray! Are you sure? I mean, of course! See you in 10? Xxx_

'Okay so she must live close' Debra thought. And with that, she grabbed her handbag, slid into some black heels and left the house in her slinky nightgown.


	2. Chapter 2 - A Slippery Slope

Debra's 1980 Toyota Camry flew across the highway in a blur of speed, her mind racing "What is happening?" "Who is this whore?" "What am I going to do when I confront this harlot?" "FUCK YOU RAY!" Before long Debra was sitting in the car park of Red Bar "What a disgusting bar, who would ever want to come here?" Debra mumbled to herself, observing drunkards falling over at the entrance to the bar like pins at a bowling alley.

As Debra approached the entrance and the bouncer out the front of the bar she couldn't shake the feeling that everyone was watching her. "This is strange" she thought to herself. People hadn't look at her in this way since she was 22 and out clubbing with her friends, in this moment Debra felt good about herself, so good that the drama of tonight was forgotten in that small moment. "Come on Debra, we have a job to do" and with that thought lodged in her mind like a broken vase that has been super glued together, she sauntered past the bouncer and into the bar.

The bar was surprisingly nice on the inside, leather booths lined the wall with classy wooden tables scattered throughout the rest of the floor. The walls were lined with red velvet, old kerosene lanterns were spaced out evenly across the walls, giving off a glow that provided enough light to see well but also exceptional mood lighting. The bar was busy but not overly crowded, Debra moved swiftly like a raging river to the bar, where she thought she had the best vantage point and ordered a drink. Debra quickly typed a message.

 _Raymond Barone_

 _Hey! I just got here, where are you? I don't see you._

Within 30 seconds the reply arrived.

 _Mimi Kartello_

 _I'm at the back of the bar next to the last booth! Xxx_

In that moment Debra looked up and saw her, a beautiful woman in a slender black dress, long wavy hair the color of a pumpkin spice latte down to her shoulders, gorgeous olive skin with a curvy figure. "Damn, how the fuck did Ray manage to get with this girl?" Deborah thought to herself. "She couldn't be any older than 25. RAY! That fucking pervert, trading me in for a younger more beautiful model" Debra fumed, drinking the rest of her gin and tonic as quickly as a wanderer lost in desert would drink water from an oasis. She hastily ordered another drink while intensely looking at Mimi from across the bar, wracking her brain for ideas on how to get revenge. Debra's eyes lit up like a lightbulb being turned on she quickly pulled out her Valium tablets from her purse, that she was prescribed for her anxiety, and put them into the drink she had just ordered. Debra walked through the crowd towards Mimi with her drink in hand ready to make conversation.


	3. Chapter 3 - The Spider Catches A Fly

Debra gracefully leant on the bar next to where Mimi was standing.

"Hi there" Debra said with a slightly noticeable flirtatious undertone.

"Ah… hey…" Mimi responded in a confused way. Debra couldn't believe how young she looked. Her heart pounded with jealousy. It beated faster than wind screen wipers during a rainstorm.

"Sorry" Debra casually laughed "I know this might seem a little random, but I saw you and thought you looked really cute. I just had to come say hi." Debra paused and shifted her gaze downward, trying her best to appear shy.

"Aw well, that's so sweet" Mimi replied before Debra cut in…

"Oh goodness, you're probably waiting for someone! Look at you!" Debra acted flustered.

"No… I mean I am" Mimi replied. She had a beautiful kindness in her eyes, like she wouldn't want to embarrass or hurt anyone "but he's not here yet, you're welcome to join me for a drink while I wait"

Mimi knew from the messages she received from Raymond that he would be there any second to save her from this awkward situation. Little did she know, the messages were from Debra.

Debra head turned and faced away from Mimi, her face soured as it turned. She waved down the bartender.

"Another gin and tonic please hun"

As the bartender handed her the new drink, Deb swiftly swapped it with the one she had spiked. She felt the greatest satisfaction handing Mimi the tainted drink.

"Thanks" Mimi said awkwardly, setting her half empty red wine aside and taking the gin from Debra.

"Cheers" Deb laughed shyly as she raised her glass

"To mid-week drinks" Mimi giggled along. She took a big gulp and put on a half-smile, pulling out her phone to check for a message from Raymond. 'He said he got here five minutes ago! Where is he' she thought, beginning to panic but not showing it.

As Mimi put the empty glass on the table a grimace appeared across her face "that drink had a strange taste… must have been a new type of gin or something" Mimi thought dismissively. Still standing across from her was this strange woman who had previously been flirting with her, being flirted with should always be fun, however, there was something strangely off about this woman. Mimi put it down to her mischievous eyes and looked at her phone concerned.

"Tell me about yourself" Debra soothed.

"Uh I don't want to be rude, but I need to make a phone call, do you mind?" Mimi said with a hint of irritation in her voice.

"Well that's no way to talk to someone who just bought you a drink." Debra snapped back.

"Thank you for the drink but I think that this conversation is over." Mimi started to slur. She knew something was wrong as soon as she tasted the drink but foolishly dismissed it. She began feeling disconnected from her limbs, as though her brain was sending movement commands to her arms and legs, but they were not listening. Panic began to spread throughout Mimi's body, her chest tightened, her breathing became laboured and wheezy as her neck became as limp as a wet noodle.

"Are you ok hun?" Debra said maliciously through clenched teeth.

Mimi screamed as loud as she possibly could but there was no noise. She suddenly felt an overwhelming need to sleep, a sleep so powerful that try as she might the sirens call could not be resisted. As Mimi drifted off into unconsciousness the image of Debra moving slowly towards her with malice in her eyes was burned into her mind.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Dawn Sets on Debra

Debra paced around in circles with her hands masking her wet face. She became aware that her heels were clicking on the floor and was scared this was creating too much noise. Debra's hands shook like an old man with Parkinson's as she unlaced her heels.

'What have I done' She thought as the anxiety choked the air out of her lungs. She heaved and reached into her bag and popped a Valium. Debra cried at the thought that she had succumbed to poisoning this stranger with what was supposed to be medicine. Was she losing her mind?

Debra tip toed to the garage door to check it was locked for what felt like the fiftieth time. She then looked back at Mimi, spangled on the floor like cooked spaghetti, with duct tape covering her delicate mouth.

'If Raymond finds out, I have no idea what I'm going to do.' She thought. She drew Raymond's phone out of her bag and deleted all message and call history from last night. As she looked at Raymond's contacts she stumbled across Roberts name. 'Maybe I could call him?'

Debra wasn't thinking clearly. Clouds covered her mind like cloudy day in her mind. She swapped Raymond's phone for her own then called Robert.

"Debra, hi is everything okay? It's 4 in the morning?"

"Robert!" She exclaimed "I need your help. Come down to your basement!"

"What? Debbie slowdown. you want me to come to my basement?"

"Yes, I know this sounds absurd, but you have to come down here now!"

"Ok, I'll be down in five minutes."

It felt like an eternity for Debra, everything slowed down dramatically, even the time between her elevated heartbeats felt like minutes. Her mind was constantly ticking over "what have I done? Where to from here? WHERE ARE YOU ROBERT?!" The only thing that snapped her out of her trance was the noise of the door opening and the bulky figure of Robert in his dressing gown coming through the doorway.

"What's this all about Deb?" Robert started before being cut off by the hysterical Debra.

"I have done something horrible Robert. I found out Ray has been cheating on me with some tramp tonight, so I went to confront her, and one thing lead to another…. You have to help me." Debra pleaded. It wasn't until this moment that Robert saw the sprawled-out body of an unconscious female with duct tape over her mouth.

"Holy shit Deb, What the fuck is wrong with you?!"

"Please Robert, I never meant for anything like this to happen but something inside of me just snapped, try putting yourself in my shoes. I didn't know where else to go." Debra sobbed.

"Ok, we obviously have to do something about this. If anyone finds out about this my career in the police force could be over!" Robert took a deep breath and sighed.

"I can help you Deb but there has to be something you can give me in return." Roberts eyes glistened in an impish manner. Debra knew instantly what was being insinuated.

"Ok Robert I'm sure we can work something out." Debra said playfully. Her tone suddenly turned serious.

"We need to sort this out first."


	5. Chapter 5 - How Magnets Attract

Robert locked the garage door from the outside and snuck Debra to the downstairs bathroom, all the while quietly quizzing her on the night's events.

"Okay, so you've deleted all the messages from Ray's phone?" He asked

"Yes Robert, they're all gone. Now what are we going to do?"

"We're going to let her go, but you know, we'll need to bribe her with something"

"How…" Debra paused shaking her head "How on earth can anything we say be enough for her not to run to the police. I don't even know if she's worked out who I am. I mean she must've. It must be obvious."

Robert quickly eyed Deb's hand and gently pulled her by her fingers into the bathroom, locking the door behind them.

"This must sound so stupid, but is there some kind of 'memory loss', 'turn back time' kind of drug we can give her?" Debra panicked. She backed herself on to the bathroom counter and faced Robert. The bathroom only just fit them both. They were both thinking about it, they were closer than they've ever been to each other before. Even in her panic, Debra couldn't help but feel lust for what she saw in Robert's deep dark eyes. She always thought about how much taller and better built he was than Ray. There was something clumsy in the way he stood, looking out of place like a sumo wrestler in a china shop. But she always found something endearing in him.

Robert shook his head bringing his large palm to his forehead "Oh Deb, this is all happening so fast."

Scared Robert was backing out, Debra pulled his thick hand from his face and fastened her comparatively small fingers around his. She stepped away from the counter and pulled herself closer to him, gently and gracefully pinning him to the wall "Rob, Rob, I know, but please like I said, put yourself in my shoes, please try and understand"

Robert's demeanour changed, and he suddenly appeared calmer under Debra's soft touch. He longed for this as long as he could remember. He couldn't fathom how someone like his brother Raymond could land a woman as beautiful as this goddess. There was instantly tension between their lips, like opposing magnets trying to draw close, but repelling at the same time. The pull felt as if it was going against natural law.

"Kiss me" Robert croaked with his deep voice. In an instant it was like the magnet vanished and they fell toward each other, like water cannot help but fall down the waterfall. A freedom rushed and tingled through Debra's hair as she squeezed Robert's firm thighs.

Robert forced himself to pull away for a moment "We're in deep already Deb" he looked pensively to the tiles on the floor.

Debra could see that he was about to tell her something.

"I have… ugh" his hands raised to his face and he pressed into his temples "I have a stash… of drugs… I use… occasionally!" he assured her.

"What can we do?"

"We need to keep her somewhere for a short while and continuously dose her until she forgets. We've got her phone so we can make up where she's been to anyone that needs to know. Once she forgets we'll drop her home and that will be that."

"With what?" Debra furrowed her brow

"Heroin."


End file.
